How Does the Co-Existence of Humour and Violence in Contemporary Visual Art Indicate the Presence of Attributes of Janus?

How Does the Co-Existence of Humour and Violence in Contemporary Visual Art Indicate the Presence of Attributes of Janus? Susan Baquie Bachelor of Fi...
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How Does the Co-Existence of Humour and Violence in Contemporary Visual Art Indicate the Presence of Attributes of Janus?

Susan Baquie Bachelor of Fine Art with Honours

School of Arts, Education and Law Queensland College of Art Griffith University

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Visual Art February 2013

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ABSTRACT

How does the co-existence of humour and violence in contemporary visual art indicate the presence of attributes of Janus?

The ancient Roman god Janus was a god of war, of the sky, and of time. The persistence of his double-faced (sometimes described as double-headed) image, and the accompanying religion and myth, validate a human need for the expression of dualism. This expression of dualism as Janus bifrons is evidenced in functional sculptures and other art works from antiquity until now, and this exegesis explores its ancient religious beginnings through to its secular manifestations. Further, the research undertaken within the studio practice and theory presented here aims to identify attributes of the ancient Janus within contemporary art where forms of humour and violence co-exist. The research posits the possibility of acknowledging dualisms as Janus or Janusian, the representation of humour as a balance to violence in contemporary art. The exegesis explores and illustrates the studio processes in relation to personal and socio-political experiences, among the resultant works of art the representational and abstract collages, which clearly show the co-existence of humour and violence in an elucidation of creative processes relating to the Janusian. The Janus attributes of time past and future, and of war, are here more obvious than those attributes of the cosmos, the templum, boundaries, and other earthly attributes, such as agriculture. In representation of death we acknowledge life, in representation of life we acknowledge death; this is Janus as god of inception and closure represented in both humour and in violence in contemporary art.

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This work has not previously been submitted for a degree or diploma in any university. To the best of my knowledge and belief, the thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made in the thesis itself.

(Signed) Susan Baquie

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CONTENTS Page Abstract ................................................................................................................... i Statement ............................................................................................................... ii Contents ..................................................................................................................v List of Illustrations ............................................................................................... vii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................... xi Introduction ...........................................................................................................1 Chapter 1: Literature Review ..............................................................................8 Section 1: Theoretical Concerns .............................................................................8 1.1.1 Humour and Violence ....................................................................................9 1.1.2 Janusian Thinking ........................................................................................11 1.1.3 A Janus Typology ........................................................................................13 1.1.4 Intertextuality ...............................................................................................16 Section 2: Janus from Antiquity to Romanticism .................................................18 1.2.1 Antiquity ......................................................................................................19 1.2.2 Janus and Rome ...........................................................................................21 1.2.3 The Renaissance Revival .............................................................................28 1.2.4 Neo-Classicism and Romanticism .....................................................................40 Section 3: Janus from Twentieth Century Modernism until Today ......................46 1.3.1 Dada and Collage .........................................................................................47 1.3.2 Self-Portraits ................................................................................................55 1.3.3 Sculpture ......................................................................................................65 1.3.4 Masks and Doors..........................................................................................68 1.3.5 The Grotesque and the Uncanny ..................................................................73 1.3.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................77 Chapter 2: Methodology.....................................................................................78 Section 1: Janus, the Body and the Personal .........................................................79 2.1.1 Janus Heads..................................................................................................79 2.1.2 Carbon Paper................................................................................................84 2.1.3 Eggs and Other Things.................................................................................87 Section 2: Janus and the Socio-Political ...............................................................94 2.2.1 Circles ..........................................................................................................94 2.2.2 Purple Shells ................................................................................................96

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2.2.3 Collage .......................................................................................................101 2.2.4 Conclusion .................................................................................................112 Chapter 3: Discussion .......................................................................................114 3.1 Histories and Theories ..................................................................................114 3.2 Myth and Creation ........................................................................................117 3.3 Including the Absurd.....................................................................................119 3.4 Duchamp’s Wheel .........................................................................................122 3.5 At War and At Home ....................................................................................125 3.6 Conclusion ....................................................................................................128 Chapter 4: Conclusion ......................................................................................130 Notes ...................................................................................................................135 Illustrations........................................................................................................149 Appendices .........................................................................................................207 Table 1: A Janus Bifrons Typology ....................................................................209 Table 2: Chart of Image Variables and Transitions ............................................211 Table 3: Chart of Twins and Doubles .................................................................229 Table 4: Max Ernst Schema for Une semaine de bonté1934 ..............................235 Image References …………………………………………………………….237 Table 1: A Janus Bifrons Typology …………………………………………...237 Table 2: Image Variables and Transitions

.………………………………….....238

Table 3: Twins and Doubles. …….………………………………………….....244 Table 4: Max Ernst Schema for Une semaine de bonté 1934 …………………248 Bibliography ………………………………………………………………….. 259

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

1.

E.V. Baquie My Twin Brothers 1948 ........................................................................ 2

2.

Representation de Janus 1803 .................................................................................. 3

3.

Paleolithic double-headed figurine 20,000BC........................................................ 19

4.

Mexican “Pretty Lady” figurine 1200–700BC ....................................................... 19

5.

Dr. F.A.Chervenak Example of Diprosopus 2000 .................................................. 20

6.

Janus at Lucignano 1400s ....................................................................................... 22

7.

Neronian coins ca. AD 64 ....................................................................................... 23

8.

Giovanni Battista Piranisi Temple of Janus 1748 ................................................... 23

9.

Thomas Nast Into the Jaws of Death: the Temple of Janus 1880–99 ..................... 24

10.

Discouri coin late 5th-early4th century BC………………………………………27

11.

Master DuBois January (detail) 1320–1335 ........................................................... 29

12.

Mars 300–400s ........................................................................................................ 31

13.

Virgin Mary at the Deposition 1000-1100s............................................................. 31

14.

Direction of the Abbess Herrad. Moyses and Christus ca.1100 .............................. 33

15.

Agnolo Bronzino Allegory of Happiness (detail) 1567........................................... 35

16.

Titian Allegory of Prudence 1550-65 ...................................................................... 36

17.

Michelangelo Buonarroti Saint Bartholomew 1536–41 .......................................... 38

18.

Jacques-Louis David The English Government 1793–4 ......................................... 40

19.

Le Roi Janus, ou l'homme à deux visages 1791–93 ................................................ 41

20.

Napoleon’s Past and Future Are Filled with Dead Bodies 1800s .......................... 42

21.

The Reform Janus 1860 ........................................................................................... 43

22.

Jean Auguste Dominic Ingres Fontaine à tête de Janus (Fountain with head of Janus) late 1700s–early 1800s ................................................................................ 44

23.

Henry Fuseli The Artist Moved to Despair at the Grandeur of Antique Fragments 1778–79 ................................................................................................................... 45

24.

Gustave Moreau Hercules and the Lernaean Hydra 1875–76................................ 45

25.

André Breton, Yves Tanguy and Jacqueline Lamba Cadavre Exquis 1938 ........... 48

26.

Max Ernst Castor and Pollution 1923 .................................................................... 49

27.

Max Ernst L’Oiseau Janus (The Bird Janus) 1974 ................................................. 49

28.

Max Ernst Sunday(Dimanche) page 33 1934 ......................................................... 52

29.

Max Ernst Sunday (Dimanche) page 34 1934……………………………… ……. 53

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30.

Janine Antoni Lick and Lather 1993 ...................................................................... 56

31.

Ben Quilty Smashed Rorschach 2009 ..................................................................... 58

32.

Ben Quilty Smashed Rorschach #2 2009 ................................................................ 58

33.

Card V of the Rorschach Test 1920 ........................................................................ 58

34.

Carlos Amorales Red Rorschach 2006.................................................................... 58

35.

Marc Quinn Self 1991 ............................................................................................. 59

36.

Mike Parr College of Cardinals 2005 ..................................................................... 61

37.

Michelangelo Merisi called Caravaggio David with Head of Goliath 1609-10 ...... 61

38.

Michelangelo Merisi called Caravaggio Narcissus 1597-99 .................................. 63

39.

Louise Bourgeois Janus Fleuri 1968 ...................................................................... 66

40.

Enzo Cucchi Il commandante della luce in perlastrazione (The Commander of Light on Patrol) 2004 .............................................................................................. 67

41.

Paul Klee Komiker (Comedian) 1904 ..................................................................... 68

42.

Man Ray Rrose Selavy 1921 ................................................................................... 69

43.

Yasumasa Morimura Doublonnage (Marcel) 1988 ................................................ 69

44.

Marcel Duchamp Ētant donnés: 1° La chute d’eau; 2° Le gaz d’éclairage 1946–66 ................................................................................................................... 71

45.

Richard Baquié Sans titre: Ētant donnés: 1° La chute d’eau; 2° Le gaz d’éclairage 1991 ........................................................................................................................ 71

46.

Victor Obsatz Portrait of Marcel Duchamp 1953................................................... 72

47.

Ian Hart and Richard Bremmer Voldemort and Quirrel as a Janus 2001............... 73

48.

Jake and Dinos Chapman Insult to Injury 2003 ...................................................... 75

49.

Jake and Dinos Chapman Disasters of War 1999 ................................................... 76

50.

African Janus-head Stool ........................................................................................ 79

51.

Susan Baquie Two Dead Men 2008 ........................................................................ 79

52.

Susan Baquie Mexican “Pretty Lady” 2006 ........................................................... 80

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Susan Baquie Mexican “Pretty Lady” 2006 ........................................................... 80

54.

Susan Baquie Mexican “Pretty Lady” 2006 ........................................................... 80

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Susan Baquie Twins and the Tribe 2007 ................................................................. 81

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Susan Baquie Twins 1992 ....................................................................................... 81

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Susan Baquie One Plus One 2007........................................................................... 81

58.

Susan Baquie Two Plus One 2007 .......................................................................... 82

59.

Susan Baquie Eros/Thanatos 2006-11 .................................................................... 83

60.

Susan Baquie Egghead 2008 ................................................................................... 83

61.

Susan Baquie Cells 2006 ......................................................................................... 85

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62.

Susan Baquie Cell (detail of Beginnings) 2006 ...................................................... 85

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Susan Baquie Beginnings 2006 ............................................................................... 86

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Susan Baquie Double-yolker #3 2007 ..................................................................... 87

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Susan Baquie Eggs and Plates 2007 ....................................................................... 88

66.

Susan Baquie Collar 2007 ...................................................................................... 90

67.

Max Ernst Portrait d’ancêtre 1965 ......................................................................... 90

68.

Susan Baquie Examples of Five Inch Squares 2007–8 ........................................... 91

69.

Susan Baquie Twins 2007 ....................................................................................... 91

70.

Susan Baquie Bubble-bubs 2008 ............................................................................. 92

71.

Susan Baquie Double Helix 2008............................................................................ 92

72.

Susan Baquie Steps 2010 ........................................................................................ 93

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Susan Baquie Janus Codex 2010 ............................................................................ 95

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Susan Baquie Untitled 2010 .................................................................................... 95

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Susan Baquie Untitled Bracket 2010 ...................................................................... 95

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Murex brandaris (Bolinus brandaris) ..................................................................... 96

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Susan Baquie Untitled with Oak Leaves 2010 ........................................................ 96

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Susan Baquie Purple Squares 2010 ........................................................................ 97

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Susan Baquie Purple Space 2010............................................................................ 97

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Susan Baquie Untitled (Given?) 2011..................................................................... 98

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Susan Baquie Untitled (Also Given?) 2011............................................................. 98

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Susan Baquie Smart Tarts 2011 .............................................................................. 99

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Susan Baquie Untitled 2011 .................................................................................... 99

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Susan Baquie Janus as Porter 2011–2.................................................................. 100

85.

Susan Baquie Janus as God of the Sky 2011–12 ................................................... 100

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Susan Baquie A Double Janus Trifrons 2011–12 ................................................. 100

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Susan Baquie Janus Quadrifrons, God of the Earth 2012 ................................................. 100

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Susan Baquie Janus Keys 2011 ............................................................................. 101

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Susan Baquie Pop: Diamonds are Forever (detail) 2008 ..................................... 103

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Susan Baquie Page 693: Guys In Disguise 2008 .................................................. 104

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Susan Baquie Tanist 2008 ..................................................................................... 105

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Susan Baquie At Sea: Dreamboat 2008 ................................................................ 105

93.

Susan Baquie The Ministration 200 ...................................................................... 106

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Susan Baquie The Castle or the Cottage 2009 ...................................................... 107

95.

Susan Baquie Two Horsemen: Kodakopia 2008 ................................................... 108

96.

Susan Baquie “G, (detail) 2009 ............................................................................ 109

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Susan Baquie Untitled 2009 .................................................................................. 110

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Susan Baquie Untitled 2009 .................................................................................. 110

99.

Susan Baquie Detritus: Quisquiliae 2009–10 ....................................................... 111

100. Susan Baquie Pop: Diamonds are Forever (detail) 2008 ..................................... 116 101. Susan Baquie Tanist (detail) 2009 ........................................................................ 118 102. Susan Baquie Tanist (detail) 2009 ........................................................................ 118 103. Susan Baquie Page 693: Guys In Disguise (detail) 2008 ..................................... 120 104. Susan Baquie Page 693: Guys In Disguise (detail) 2008……………………… 120 105. Susan Baquie Page 685: The Black Hand 2008 ................................................... .121 106. Susan Baquie The Fox and Crown (detail) 2009 .................................................. 122 107. Susan Baquie At Sea: Dreamboat (detail) 2009................................................... .124 108. Susan Baquie The Castle or the Cottage (detail) 2008 ........................................ .125 109. Susan Baquie Battle at Iquique: Royal Navy Girl 2009 ........................................ 126 110. Max Ernst Lundi, page 66 1934 ........................................................................... 126 111. Susan Baquie Mrs. Winslow 2009 ........................................................................ .127 112. Susan Baquie The Ministration (detail) 2009 …………………………….… ….127

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My sincere thanks and gratitude go to those who have assisted me throughout the process of research, particularly Dr Stephen Hobson, my Principal Supervisor. He has been a most helpful and observant supervisor, providing suggestions for literary research and writing. The time, care, and attention to detail he has given to read and to assist my writing, and to provide continual support, suggestion and discussion is most appreciated. Thanks also to my Associate Supervisor Dr Ashley Whamond for his kind assistance and opinion and the time he also has taken to read and assist my writing. My previous supervisors Dr Donna Marcus and Dr Charles Zuber also deserve my thanks, Dr. Marcus for her kindness and advice and Dr. Zuber for his opinion and his sense of humour. I wish to thank the Queensland College of Art Fine Arts lecturers, those who have over the years assisted me in learning more about the production of art, and the Art Theory lecturers, those who have helped me to expand my knowledge and appreciation of art. My thanks also go to Cheryl Stephens and the Griffith library staff without whom access to knowledge would be much more difficult. I especially thank my children who have always been supportive. They have grown up with a mother whose love of art is a large part of her life - their loyalty and encouragement are treasured. My thanks also go to those relatives and friends who have provided support and encouragement which has been, and always is, welcome.

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